Combination bag and sunshade



M 1951- VOLLWEILER 2,554,688

COMBINATION BAG AND SUNSHADE Filed July 13, 1948 INVENTOR. 15 ans Vollweuier Patented May 29, I951 COMBINATION BAG AND SUNSHADE Hans Vollweiler, New York, N. Y., assignor of one-- half to Sigmund Lichtstern, New York, N. Y.

' Application July 1a, 1948, Serial No. 38,430

' 1 Claim. (01. 135-5) This invention relates to a new article of luggage, and has for its principal object the provision of a novel, light-weight shopping, beach or garment-carrying bag which is simple and inexpensive in construction and which will be convenient for use and be adapted for a large variety of purposes. To this end the improved bag or carrier is of flexible material, preferably of canvas or other similar fabric, so that when not in use it may be rolled or folded into small compass, and comprises a body portion preferably folded on itself intermediate its ends, and which can be used when it is unfolded as a mat to lie on, for instance on the beach, or as a sunshade, or as a table cloth for picnics, or the like.

With the foregoing and other objects in view which will appear as the description proceeds, the invention consists of certain novel details of construction and combinations of parts hereinafter more fully described and pointed out in the claim, it being understood that changes may be made in the construction and arrangement of parts without departing from the spirit of the invention as claimed.

In the accompanying drawings the preferred forms of the invention have been shown.

Fig. 6 is a detailed, enlarged, exploded elevational view of a rod used in connection with the device.

Similar reference characters refer to similar parts throughout the several views.

In the drawing the numeral l denotes a longitudinal sheet of canvas or of any other suitable light-weight flexible material, which is foldable upon itself along a horizontal folding line intermediate its shorter end portions, the latter being folded back upon themselves and have their outer edges secured to the sheet so as to form tubular channels 2, which are of large diameter and open at both ends. On the sheet I there are provided slide fastener stringers 3 cooperating with sliders 4 or any other suitable fastening means for detachably securing to one another the halves of 2 those edges of said sheet which are rightangularly disposed to the sheet end portions that form the channels 2. The longitudinal edge portions of the sheet I at the ends of said horizontal folding line preferably are curved inwardly so as to form substantially V-shaped recesses, as may be seen in Figs. 1 and 2, and the stringers 3 follow these recesses. The corner portions of the sheet I are provided with apertures which preferably are reinforced by means of grommets 9 or the like, and slots II are provided in the sheet adjacent the channels 2.

When the device is used as a bag, the fasteners 34 are closed (Figs. 3 and. 4), and several rod sections 5 and 6 are contained within the channels thus stiffening the latter and reinforcing them, so that the bag can be carried conveniently with one hand extending through the registering slots l I and gripping those portions of the channels 2 which are adjacent the slots l I. Said channel portions having the quality of a well-sized double handle as long as the rod sections 5 and 6 are contained within the channels 2. Although there are shown four rod sections in each channel 2 in Fig. 3, it will be obvious that fewer rod sections, for instance only two rod sections can be inserted into each channel 2, and the remaining rod sections can be placed within the bag, preferably at its bottom. At least some of the rodsections for instance the sections 5, preferably are shorter than the sheet I is wide,

' so that some of them can be carried within the bag. Thus, by placing more or fewer rod sections into the channels 2, a person can easily adjust the thickness of the handle to fit the size of his or her hand.

If it is desired to use the device as a picnic table cloth, or as a mat to lie on, or the like, the sliders 4 are moved down to the center of the sheet I, so that the latter can be unfolded (Fig. 1).

The rod sections 5 and 6 can be joined lengthwise to one another and can be used as vertical supports of the unfolded sheet I, so that the latter can be used as sun shade or as a small roof. In order to facilitate this, I prefer to provide a sleeve member 1 on each rod section 6, and to reduce the extremity 8 of each rod section 5 to such a diameter that it fits tightly through a grommet 9. After the rod sections 5 have been joined to the rod sections 6, the latter are inserted into the ground, for instance into the sand of the beach, and resilient caps ll] of rubber or the like are stuck upon the extremities 8 of the rod sections 5 above the sheet I. so that the latter cannot be blown off by the wind.

Since certain changes may be made in the above article and different embodiments of the invention could be made without departing from the scope thereof, it is intended that all matter contained in the above description or shown in the accompanying drawing shall be interpreted as illustrative and not in a limiting sense.

It is also to be understood that the following claim is intended tocover all of the generic and specific features of "the invention herein described, and all statements of the scope of the invention which as a matter of language might be said to fall therebetween.

Having thus fully described my said invention, what I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent in the United States'is:

A device of the character described comprising a longitudinal sheet foldable upon itself along a horizontal folding line intermediate its shorter end portions and having curved V-shaped recesses at .both ends of said folding line, said shorterlend portions being folded back upon themselves :and.

have their outer edges secured tothesheetso as to. form tubular channels-which are open at both ends and which are of large diameter; islide fasteners being provided-Von the'longitudinal' sides of said sheet following said V-shaped recesses and beingadaptedfor connecting to.one another the halves of each longitudinal-sedge of tthezsheet tremities of said rods above said sheet; said tubularchannels being adapted to receive four longitudinal sections of said rod.

HANS VOLLWEILER.

. REFERENCES CITED Thefollowing references are of record in the fileof this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 1,315,497 .Higdon etv'al. :Sept.-9, 191-9 1,629,362 Robert May 17, 1927 1930 404 Wagner "Oct. 10, 1933 2,135,419 Wesseler Nov. 1, 1938 2,170,379 =Ortt Aug..22, 1939 2,315,126 'Michalke' et;al.. Mar. 30, 1943 

